Armchair Coach/Selector time

[Chipmunk]

On the plus side, we apparently have the 4th best number of "decoy runs" in the comp .... yes thats right .... wtf? ...

Maybe cos no f**ker wants the ball and just runs aimlessly

I find this staggering to believe to be honest. Do they count someone as a decoy if someone runs the ball and if they doesn't pass the ball to someone next to them they consider that a decoy?

 

[Noise]

That's a bit unfair on Jennings. You can't carry players like French in the NRL any more.

In attack we are also carrying Kaysa Pritchard and Peni Terepo too

 

[Chipmunk]

In attack we are also carrying Kaysa Pritchard and Peni Terepo too

We don't really seem to have a lot of choice with Pritchard. it's either him or King and neither are 80 minute players.

I found the decision to start Terepo strange.

 

[Happy MEel]

[/QUOTE]

So you're just picking and choosing the data you want to matter? You're better than that.



No it doesn't. The Dragons have, with the exception of one game, missed more tackles the more that they have been asked to make. As have the Cowboys. It's right there ffs. The Dragons had one great defensive game (Rd 2) but as they make more, they miss more. The Cowboys had one shocker where they missed a buttload, but the trend is very clear....the only time they've missed under 20 tackles is when they've made the least for their season.

The Dragons have had the one stormer in defence, but they miss fairly consistently in the mid teens when they make in the mid 200-odd tackles. They also missed by far their most tackles in the only other game they've been asked to make 300 or more.

If you define data by its' outliers, then you're bound to be wrong.

Hang on, you chose the Cowboys as the comparator, not me. I was just highlighting that when establishing the quality of a defence a team who is bottom 4 isn’t a great comparison.

If we look at your figures in order of missed tackles this is the order

337/8
251/11
247/12
280/15
224/16
315/30

266/12
281/20
302/23
313/30
392/31
249/32

There’s a trend with the Cowboys in relation to number of tackles and missed tackles but I’d argue not so much with the dragons.

Edit: I’ll also add that the 2 games the Cowboys comfortably won possession as you said, their missed tackles were in the lower half of that list so higher possession doesn’t necessarily correlate with lower missed tackles.

 

[Bazal]

Hang

Well now that's just rude.

 

[Noise]

Brown and Hayne are a chance next week

 

[Chipmunk]

Brown and Hayne are a chance next week

We should at least get a few wins once we're full strength.

 

[emjaycee]

So why would the coach put him on the wing, then?

That's a bit unfair on Jennings. You can't carry players like French in the NRL any more.

I don't know why and whether it was/is fair or not - it just seemed to me that if a kick looked like going to French's wing, MJ was back there and took the hit up. I don't know whether it was an instruction, but it did seem planned.

 

[Gazzamatta]

I don't know why and whether it was/is fair or not - it just seemed to me that if a kick looked like going to French's wing, MJ was back there and took the hit up. I don't know whether it was an instruction, but it did seem planned.

I agree. Some of "our plans" are puzzling to say the least.

 

[Bazal]

Jennings recorded zero kick returns last night...although that doesn't mean he wasn't given the ball by someone else, I think that counts as a normal run?

 

[JokerEel]

What Junior forwards have come through in the past 5 years to debut for us in first grade?

 

[emjaycee]

I agree. Some of "our plans" are puzzling to say the least.

Truth be told, this one doesn't puzzle me too much.

French is probably the lightest winger in the comp and isn't therefore designed for kick returns against a straight line defence close to the sideline, but BA wants/needs his speed out there because without it we lack anyone who can go the length of the field.

Unfortunately, with Gutho becoming available, he needed to slot into FB meaning French needed to go to the wing but with the recent rag-dolling of French and the wet conditions last night, teams would be dumb not to kick to him in the corners and try and drag him over the sideline.

I don't recall that he had that problem in 2016 or 17 when he played on the wing and scorched the field on more than one occasion to score heaps of tries.

I think he is lacking confidence and I put that down to 3 things:
1) the continued media that he was only holding the fullback spot for Gutherson;
2) the lack of go-forward and opportunity for broken play that our forwards failed to give him in the first 3 or 4 rounds; and
3) nowhere near the short kicking game from Norman or Moses that benefits a speedster like French. Last night they kicked short into Gennings side a few times but I cannot remember them once doing the same for French.

 

[emjaycee]

What Junior forwards have come through in the past 5 years to debut for us in first grade?

LMGTFY or just search in this forum where it has been discussed numerous times already.

 

[Barry O'Speedwagon]

I find this staggering to believe to be honest. Do they count someone as a decoy if someone runs the ball and if they doesn't pass the ball to someone next to them they consider that a decoy?

Not necessarily. If the 'decoy' runs through the line and the ball carrier passes to someone else, then yep, they're a decoy. Similarly if the ball carrier dummies and the 'decoy' runs through the line that would also count. But if a ball player simply runs to the line in company, and takes a tackle before the other runners run through the defense line, there are no decoys.

 

[The EELiminator]

Not necessarily. If the 'decoy' runs through the line and the ball carrier passes to someone else, then yep, they're a decoy. Similarly if the ball carrier dummies and the 'decoy' runs through the line that would also count. But if a ball player simply runs to the line in company, and takes a tackle before the other runners run through the defense line, there are no decoys.

what happens if the ball goes over the sideline do they all count as decoys?

 

[Gazzamatta]

Truth be told, this one doesn't puzzle me too much.

French is probably the lightest winger in the comp and isn't therefore designed for kick returns against a straight line defence close to the sideline, but BA wants/needs his speed out there because without it we lack anyone who can go the length of the field.

Unfortunately, with Gutho becoming available, he needed to slot into FB meaning French needed to go to the wing but with the recent rag-dolling of French and the wet conditions last night, teams would be dumb not to kick to him in the corners and try and drag him over the sideline.

I don't recall that he had that problem in 2016 or 17 when he played on the wing and scorched the field on more than one occasion to score heaps of tries.

I think he is lacking confidence and I put that down to 3 things:
1) the continued media that he was only holding the fullback spot for Gutherson;
2) the lack of go-forward and opportunity for broken play that our forwards failed to give him in the first 3 or 4 rounds; and
3) nowhere near the short kicking game from Norman or Moses that benefits a speedster like French. Last night they kicked short into Gennings side a few times but I cannot remember them once doing the same for French.

Probably MJC but it obviously didnt go to plan. Apart from his try saving tackle I havent seen a weaker wing performance for a long time. Another example of a player totally out of form.
Why? Who the fu*k knows. Its contagious. They all need shots.

 

[I'm a loser baby...]

Truth be told, this one doesn't puzzle me too much.

French is probably the lightest winger in the comp and isn't therefore designed for kick returns against a straight line defence close to the sideline, but BA wants/needs his speed out there because without it we lack anyone who can go the length of the field.

Unfortunately, with Gutho becoming available, he needed to slot into FB meaning French needed to go to the wing but with the recent rag-dolling of French and the wet conditions last night, teams would be dumb not to kick to him in the corners and try and drag him over the sideline.

I don't recall that he had that problem in 2016 or 17 when he played on the wing and scorched the field on more than one occasion to score heaps of tries.

I think he is lacking confidence and I put that down to 3 things:
1) the continued media that he was only holding the fullback spot for Gutherson;
2) the lack of go-forward and opportunity for broken play that our forwards failed to give him in the first 3 or 4 rounds; and
3) nowhere near the short kicking game from Norman or Moses that benefits a speedster like French. Last night they kicked short into Gennings side a few times but I cannot remember them once doing the same for French.

So essentially we have a winger who can't play in the wet?

 

[Noise]

What Junior forwards have come through in the past 5 years to debut for us in first grade?

Alvaro and Tep

 

[emjaycee]

Probably MJC but it obviously didnt go to plan. Apart from his try saving tackle I havent seen a weaker wing performance for a long time. Another example of a player totally out of form.
Why? Who the fu*k knows. Its contagious. They all need shots.

I don't know why and more of a concern is that I don't think anyone in the club knows either.
I think it is simply that after a bad start in the first 2 rounds the players have a severe case of the "yips" now. And sometimes, the harder you try to get out of that form, the more you dig yourself into it.

 

[Barry O'Speedwagon]

what happens if the ball goes over the sideline do they all count as decoys?

If the pass is thrown after the runners are in front of the passer.